Riverside
Police Department
Press Release

For Immediate Release

Date

May 20, 2003

Contact

Detective Joe Avila

Phone

(909) 826-5577

Fax

(909) 826-2594

Fatal
Traffic Collision

Riverside, Ca- On May 20, 2003, at 2050
hours, officers of the Riverside Police Department responded to a single vehicle
fatal traffic collision on Van Buren Blvd south of Dufferin Av. that killed a
21-year-old male driver and sole occupant of a 1996 Honda Accord.

Skid marks at the scene revealed that the driver was traveling north bound on
Van Buren in the #2 lane when he lost control of his vehicle and slid broadside
into a palm tree in the center divider. The force of the impact caused the
engine compartment to separate from the rest of the vehicle. The driver, not
wearing a seat belt, was ejected from the now open passenger compartment.

The driver, a Riverside area resident, is not being identified pending
notification to the family. The cause of the collision is still under
investigation. It is not known if alcohol or excessive speed was a factor in the
collision. Members of the Departmentís Major Accident Investigation Team (M.A.I.T.)
responded.